Marauders IV
by AutumnSunLight
Summary: Sophie is the fifth Marauder, although being one of the guys was never on her "to-do" list. Neither was falling for her best friend, Albus.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

_ I followed him, away from the others. The ivy covered buildings and overcast skies made everything seem timeworn, hushed, and slightly surreal. He was standing next to one of the buildings, back facing me, and I wondered what he wanted. I knew what_ I_ wanted, but it was doubtful he felt the same way. We were friends, good friends, but certainly not lovers, and I'd come to care for him that way. _

_ I walked up to him and he turned, staring down at me. I knew the game would be starting soon, and he needed to go get changed. I wondered why he had wanted me to meet him here, now. No one was around; I wished so much that he would reach down and kiss me. I briefly considered pulling his face down to mine myself, then abandoned the idea. It was deeply flawed if he didn't feel the same way, besides, I wanted him to kiss me, not the other way around._

_ His eyes held mine, deep and warm. He was safety to me, home and love. I was sure of him in a way I hadn't thought I could be, not after all that had happened. He was deliberately reaching his hand out to my face, cupping my cheek. I looked up at him in shock, and his eyes silently asked me if I wanted this. In answer I slid both arms up and around his neck. His free hand settled on my lower back, gently holding me closer. _

_ Slowly, painfully slowly, he lowered his head down towards mine, eyes still locked on my own. Then his lips brushed mine, bottom lip slipping between my own, and my eyes shut. His thumb stroked my cheek bone as he continued to kiss me gently. Then he deepened the kiss, and I pressed closer to him, wanting to savor his warmth and the feeling of complete safety I'd found in his arms, before it was over. _

I bolted upright in bed, heart racing. A peek outside my bed hangings showed dawn beginning to steal over the grounds. I flopped back down in bed, wondering if I'd ever get back to sleep, before it was time to get up, after _that_ dream.

This really needed to stop.

It was never my intention to be "One of the guys." But that's precisely what Tyler Lyndhurst had just implied, grinning across the floor at me from his spot playing Wizarding chess.

I sputtered, stuttering over a multitude of comebacks and retorts, itching to reach over and smack him. Albus sat next to me, wisely staying out of it. Logan Elms and Drew Wood sniggered, not even bothering to hide how funny they thought it was. I finally found my voice.

"I'm wearing a dress!" I shrieked. And not only that, but a vintage floral patterned maxi dress, about as girly as it could get. "I have long hair and wear make up!" I continued my rant. "What is your problem?"

"I still just see five guys," Tyler said mildly, prodding a chess piece with an overly casual gesture. I would have considered pulling his hair at this point, but it was cropped so close to his head, it wouldn't have done me any good. My hands twitched, forming a circle and squeezing around thin air as I imagined his neck between my fingers. _Now_ Al smirked, and I grinned back at my best friend.

Logan nudged Tyler and pointed at my hands, grinning broadly. "You got 'er!" he told his friend, and they high-fived, along with Drew. Albus leaned back, away from the celebration, a concerned look flashing across his face as my own countenance grew stormy.

They may have been the Seventh Year Gryffindor boys, and the Marauders IV, but there were certain loyalties within our group that were hard and fast. Albus stayed out of any group drive-Sophie-crazy plots, preferring to annoy me solo. It wasn't quite the same as having an ally, but he was defiantly Team Switzerland, no matter how hard any of us tried to convert him to our cause.

I went back to my book, but was interrupted not a minute later by an insistent poking in my side. Al and Logan were the only two that could get away with doing it. For some reason, Logan had always been like my brother, although with his dark, almost ebony skin, he couldn't look less like my sibling, since I was pale almost to a point of literally being white. Everyone thought the tall African wizard was so tough, but with me, he was just my teddy bear 'brother'. And Albus was my best friend, so he could get away with pretty much anything.

As a Muggle-born, I'd had no idea what to expect when I boarded the Hogwarts express almost seven years ago. All of the little girls had been running around, screaming and giggling and they'd quite frankly scared me out of my mind. I'd noticed Albus, and wandered over. He was strolling quietly down the corridor with an owl cage in one hand and a trunk in the other, and I'd slipped up beside him. We'd introduced ourselves, although he'd hesitated before telling me his last name.

I'd wondered why he seemingly didn't like it, but smiled and nodded along anyway. His green eyes had lit up.

I glanced up into the same green eyes now, glittering with happiness as he drove me crazy. I started poking him back, and before long we'd lapsed into an all-out tickle war. Unfortunately, it was rather one sided, as always, since Al was somehow not ticklish, so all I was really doing to him was smacking him ineffectively.

I laughed until my chest hurt, and remembered that first day on the train again. I'd thought I'd be by myself again when he'd stopped at a compartment and said, "Here's my family." But the then-seventeen year old Victoire had spotted me talking to Al and watching forlornly as he started opening the door. She'd poked her head around the corner as the door opened and asked me my name, then asked me to come sit by her. I had, shyly, and Albus had grinned at me from across the compartment as I was introduced to Rose, and all the other Weasley and Potter kids. A chocolate frog had freaked me out, and also explained why Albus hadn't wanted to share his last name, as I happened to get his father's card.

We'd sat together during the Welcome Feast, and I, "Oliver, Sophie", had been place in Gryffindor moments before "Potter, Albus". Logan and Tyler had expected him to walk straight to them, but he'd plunked down next to me where I'd sat, away from the newly minted-and still giggling-first year girls.

"Al, stop," I gasped, and he shook his head, grinning triumphantly. A groan went up from Drew as Tyler won, and suddenly someone tackled Albus. I never did figure out who started it, because by the time I sat up all four boys were in a pile on the floor wrestling each other.

I sighed in resignation and watched them fondly for a minute, then curled up on the sofa, away from the flailing limbs, with my book. Several pages later, Al flopped down on next to me, pressed against me from shoulder to knee and dropped his head back against the sofa. His warm body was almost a familiar to me as my own, after having grown up side by side with him, practically joined at the hip. I felt safe with him next to me.

But the butterflies, the ones that had been multiplying for the last few years, from just one or two in fifth year, to so many now that ignoring them was about as easy as overlooking a hippogriff.

I glanced up into my best friend's brilliantly green eyes and felt a sharp tug in my stomach and an ache in my chest, suspiciously close to my heart. The other thing I never intended to do had also happened-somewhere along the line, it's impossible to say where, I'd fallen in love with my best friend.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

My little sister, Claire, is a Second Year Gryffindor, and thinks that because _I'm_ friends with Albus and the rest of the boys, she can bounce up and down in their faces, demanding attention. No, my little sister is not afraid of boys a foot taller, and an average of six years older than her. Albus is her favorite, though. She calls him her brother.

Over the years, this has led to more potentially embarrassing moments over the summers and now, year round, than I usually care to think about. I have, however, built up a resistance to it, so even though it's still annoying as hell, Al and I can still laugh about it…or at least smile sheepishly.

She has introduced him to family friends as our "brother." There was the time she loudly announced at dinner(with his family, my family, more friends and kids than I can remember to count) that he "whispers to her during movies," at which point movies had to be explained. Never mind the fact that he only mutters movie lines when he's already seen it, whether or not I have or not.

So not a big deal.

Okay, so it's kind of endearing, and he feels the need to lean really close.

But still. No big deal, I swear.

Claire has also asked him "what kind of brother-in-law are you?"

On my birthday.

In front of everybody. Especially my grandma. That one wasn't so easy to laugh about.

So you see, I really, really don't like having her around my friends and I. She's really nothing but spoiled trouble, everything that scared me about tweenage girls when I was her age. Her attitude has gone steadily downhill, to the point that Albus is about the only person who can talk to her without being bratted out on. Even her friends she snips at, either to their faces or behind their backs. And then there's the boy-craziness(which I had, but kept under wraps because of the Marauders, and my only girlfriend at that point was Rose, the only Ravenclaw Weasley, was really, really not boy crazy.) But Claire waves her hormone-crazed flag loud, proud and high. The only thing keeping the shrimpy vultures from circling even more than they already do are the Marauders, who have been mobilized by me(Don't look at me like that. My twelve year old baby sister does _not_ need a boyfriend. Or boy friends, although considering who I've hung out with, it's a bit hypocritical of me), and Albus(even though he likes to think he's so chill about it.) to keep her lip-virginity intact.

Never mind that I'm pretty sure I'm the only one of us who hasn't kissed anyone. And sitting surrounded by 'my' boys, that's not likely to change any time soon. They're just as much _my_ body guards as they are Claire's…and Lily's, even though she's a Fourth Year, and probably could have a boyfriend, not that I'd even mention that to Al, or his older, even more protective brother, James. I couldn't really bring myself to care about any other guys, however, as the midday April sun streamed into the Great Hall and Al and I bumped elbows once again as we ate.

Claire bounced up, shoved in next to Albus on his other side(that might be because I've threatened bodily harm-or public humiliation-if she comes between us. Or there might be a cute Third Year over there I can't see and don't care about. Eh. Whatever.) "Albus…" she sing-songed, "Have you ever kissed a girl?"

I nudged him and grinned, quirking an eyebrow as he gagged. "I…er…" he glanced over at me, then sat a little straighter. "What do you think?" he asked cockily. "Of course I have," his statement was

accompanied by a smug smirk. I gaped at him. Maybe I lied earlier. All the guys but Al have had girlfriends, or at least snogging buddies(and don't think they didn't get an earful from me about _that_)…so I may have kinda thought that maybe he was just as inexperienced as I am. He's my best friend, wouldn't he tell me?

So here I am, almost choking on my pumpkin juice, all the while trying to look unconcerned and nonchalant. Of course, I don't have much wiggle room in the whole telling-each-other-everything since he's got no clue about the stupid bats in my stomach(yeah, they're bats when I'm jealous or upset with him or…whatever. They're bats when I'm annoyed to have them. So what?) Albus was watching me intensely. I rolled my eyes slightly, and crunched a piece of bacon, then leaned around him to talk to Claire. "You really need to calm down," I said, glaring for affect. She just rolled her eyes and flounced off, all tween attitude and swagger. Ugh.

I sat there, wondering who it could be(Lavender Brown-Clancy's twin girls were always snogging _somebody_, or maybe Rose's friend Joy…nah. Rose would know, and she'd tell me. Hey, maybe he means his Mum! Or his grandmum. They're girls, and I've seen him kiss them on the cheek. Or Lily, he annoys her with pecks on the top of her head all the time. I hope, I hope…), while around me everyone continued shoving their food in.

"It's hot," Logan whined, digging into his desert.

"You know what'll fix that, right?" Tyler said, wiggling his eyebrows. I was sitting across the table from him, and I kicked him swiftly in the shin. "Hey! What's that for?"

"I know exactly what you're thinking…swimming in the lake, with all those bikini-clad girls," I snapped. "You disgust me."

He shrugged, and tried to smile charmingly. Any other girl would have fallen for it, but I knew him when he was a scrawny, scrappy thirteen year old…who was honing his flirting skills on me. Just because every single one of the Marauders has somehow turned out Adonis-like doesn't mean that I've suddenly lost the disinterest I felt in Third Year. Except for Albus…I'd been slowly falling for him since that September 1st almost seven years ago. "Actually," he began, "I was thinking more along the lines of _string_ bikinis."

He looked around the table with his hands up, ready for high-fives, but he was the only one who objectified girls _quite_ that much. Logan grinned a bit, but I glared daggers at him and his hands stayed on his utensils. Drew had a steady girlfriend, but had always been more quiet and studious anyway. Al was…well, Al; he was just a really good guy.

A sixth year, however, didn't realize the politics of high-fiving or not, and gaily smacked Ty's hand with a grin and a head-nod I'm sure he thought was cool. I rolled my eyes and tried not to eye every fifth, sixth and seventh year girl with suspicion.

As I watched Tyler attempt, and probably succeed, to win over yet another girl by the far side of the Great Lake, I pulled off my cover up and quickly cast a sunblock charm. Albus sidled up next to me and started muttering about how to do it, and I grinned and flicked my wand in his direction. "Thanks," he smiled sheepishly. I nodded. It was what we did. He wasn't a male pig, looked out for me, gave me somewhere safe to run, and I tended to take care of him. Who needed a boyfriend or girlfriend when we both had all the perks-except for that one biggie-with none of the hassle?

If we'd started going out when we were twelve or thirteen, adhering to the stereotypes, the chances that he'd be anything more than an awkward memory by now were nil to zero. As it was, I had a best friend who always had my back, and our group of friends was intact.

At least, that's what I told myself. Slowly but surely all our friends had found _someone _at some point, and I was starting to feel a little left out. Sure, it's drama-filled and stupid and it all usually ends in tears(but then there are stories like Al's parents, and Al's aunt and uncle…), but it's also more laid back before you have jobs and adult stresses and everything. Ugh.

Al cannonballed into the water in front of me, jumping off the rock that we used as our unofficial pier. The Hogwarts golden couple, Rose and Scorpius, were having a water fight several yards away and I smirked as Rose managed to dunk him. They'd caused quite the gossip storm a year ago when they started going out, but eventually everyone had gotten used to a Weasley and a Malfoy wandering around looking moony-eyed at each other and holding hands. It was sickeningly sweet enough as it was, but they made Head boy and girl this year, too.

"Hey," Madeline sashayed up, twisting her hair into a messy knot under the hug wide-brim hat that shaded her exotic eyes. She was the only Gryffindor girl in my year I could stand, although she and her twin brother, Mark, were still 'new' to Hogwarts. Usually the only new kids were the first years, but they'd transferred from other schools at the beginning of sixth year, and we'd hit it off. She was built like a ballerina, tiny with long limbs and lithe lines. We'd never been able to guess on our own what their heritage was-both siblings had dark brown, almost black hair, small noses and freckles-but she'd confided that their mixed European heritage was supplemented by an Asian great-grandmother on her dad's side.

I smiled back, and stretched out on a towel to enjoy the spring sun. Maddy sat down next to me and sighed in contentment, although she kept her hat firmly on her head to guard against more freckles. As she'd told me last summer, "A few are cute, but they're like sprinkles-less is more." Then she added with a giggle, "Besides, I don't want leather for skin when I'm fifty."

We lay in silence, just relishing the pleasant heat, with no fear of a sun burn thanks to our charms, for all of two minutes before a wave of water hit us. Or rather, me, and I thrashed so much Maddy got wet to. I opened my eyes to find Albus treading water twenty feet away, wand out. "You!" I yelled, glaring. He grinned, and agreed. "Me!"

Maddy rolled her eyes, tossed her hat down and swan-dove into the water. I watched her take long strokes out to Drew at the raft we always stuck out in the lake. Rose and her books were good for so _many_ things. Maddy had hit it off so well with me that she'd ended up hanging out with all of us, and before I knew it, _my_ girl friend had become Drew's _girlfriend_. It was lovely, though. I loved the guys like brothers and wanted them all to find happiness, and love if they were looking for it.

I eyed Al, and decided I'd made him wait long enough. He'd never actually tell me if he wanted me to do something, just pester me until I'd tripped into in by myself. I got up and ran as quickly as I could, hoping to surprise him by canon-balling as close to him as possible.

I must have misjudged the distance, though, because when I came up, Albus was nowhere in sight. The water was pleasantly cool, and the sun made it look as though it were studded with diamonds. I turned in a circle, looking for Al.

Rose had obviously not drowned her boyfriend, because they appeared to have moved on to a race, towards the raft where Drew and Maddy sat with their feet dangling.

Tyler was, unsurprisingly, showing the same girl from earlier how to spike a volleyball in the shallows. Logan charged out of the water, up the rock and then jumped in next to me.

There were a few other kids scattered around, but Albus was nowhere to be seen.

"Logan, where's Al?" I asked as I treaded water, and he shrugged, then dove down. I floated on my back and waited for him to show up, and a minute later Maddy shrieked, slithering down the side of the raft into the water, obviously be pulled by something. Drew yelled and jumped in, grappling with whatever was gripping her ankle. Finally, she broke free, and scuttled back to the center of the raft. Drew was yelling, and I swan closer.

"What kind of sick joke-"

"Dude, calm down," Mark, Maddy's twin, popped above the water and cut off her boyfriend. "I've been scaring her our whole lives. It's _fun_." Logan appeared as well, and high-fived Mark, grinning.

"He's right," Maddy said, "he's been scaring me our _whole_ lives." She lifted the hem of her retro two-piece and pointed to the birthmark along her rib cage. "This," she pointed, "is from that idiot kicking me in-utero, _constantly_, as soon as he grew a pair." The boys snickered. "Of _legs_! Geez."

I giggled, and turned to Albus to debate the likelihood that it was actually from Mark's pre-natal efforts, only to remember that he was still MIA. "Guys, Al's been gone at least five minutes, and he didn't have time to make it back to shore." I was starting to feel a bit panicked, but everyone else seemed unconcerned.

A jumbled chorus of "I'm sure he's fine," and "oh, let him do whatever he wants," and "why do we care?", among other things met my ears, and I felt myself starting to hyperventilate. Now that I thought, really thought, the second before I jumped I saw him go under. So where was he? He couldn't hold him breath more than a minute or two, I was certain.

"Logan," I tugged on his arm, "please help me find him." I was sure I starting to look entirely too concerned, after all, the boys weren't worried, why should I be? Of course, they were the brilliant minds that made a "Professor's Underwear" display for Valentines Day fourth year (I was _not_ involved.) that was labled, sang and (sigh) did catcalls.

"Pheephee," ugh, I hated that nickname. Luckily only Logan used it. "chill, Al will turn up," Logan turned away, a strange look on his face.

I swam off on my own, scanning the water for Albus. Suddenly, arms wrapped around me from behind. "Ahhh!"

"What?" the arms let go, and I whipped my head around to find Albus staring at me. The butterflies in my stomach belatedly shifted at the contact, and I smacked him to cover.

"Where did you go?" I demanded. _you scared me_, I thought_._

"Just poking around underwater. Jeez." I refrained from point out that he'd pestered me into the water moments before he'd decided to "poke around".

"But you were gone for so long," I said, confused.

"Oh, that's _right_." Al smirked. "You were sick the day Dad taught everyone the bubblehead charm. And it was the last time we swam that summer. Oops, I must have forgotten."

But I could tell by his smug grin he definitely _hadn't_ forgotten.

"Albus Severus Potter!" I shrieked, then made a grab for his head. He managed to dunk me, instead, though.

Oh, it was _so_ on.


	3. Chapter 3

"Oops." I tried to peel myself up off the Quidditch pitch, and ended up flopping back down into the soft grass. The other Marauders, plus Rose, Scorp, Maddy, Mark, some Hufflepuff Tyler was 'dating' (for the week) named Fiona, and I were playing an impromptu game. After several of us being sent to the hospital wing-for several days-because of inexperienced beaters, we mostly just used the Quaffle, although a Snitch was generally brought out for the more premeditated games. The guys had games with the Bludgers, but Rose and I had refused to play with them after a particularly nasty accident in fourth year.

Al, Tyler, Logan, Rose and Scorpius all played for their house teams, but the rest of us were just in it for the fun. Although right now, it didn't feel so fun. Albus appeared and held out a hand to me, which I took gratefully. "Than-" I started, but as Al jerked me up, the air left my lungs in a _whoosh_ as I crashed into his chest. My right hand was still tangled in his left, pressed between our chests, as I darted a glance up, only to find him struggling not to smirk down at me, eyes glinting mischievously. He'd yanked me up hard purposefully, knowing I'd crash into him. He did it every time, and I fell for it every time too.

And leaning against his (incredibly well muscled) chest, I really wasn't complaining. Except I wasn't supposed to be _staying_ here, and I definitely wasn't supposed to get lost in those achingly familiar green eyes.

I jerked back. "_Thanks,_" I repeated, trying to inject as much sarcasm as possible this time to cover my moony-eyed-ness (is that even a word?). Al grinned, and got back on his broom while I dusted myself off. I swallowed down the butterflies threatening to climb out of my stomach and swung back onto my broom.

Over the years, our games, depending on the day, could go fairly well, or could end up breaking into multiple small games as couples faced off. Today was obviously one of those days, as the two minutes I'd been on the ground was all it had taken for Rose and Scorpius to break away, while Tyler and Fiona had disappeared to God-only-knows where, although Maddy and Drew were more focused, still teamed up against Mark and Logan, heedless of their teammate's desertion. I rose through the air on my broom, intending to rejoin them, only to have Albus pop up in front of me, clutching a Quaffle and grinning.

I rolled my blue eyes, but could already feel myself giving in. I never could resist him. I stuck my tongue out at him and leaned low over my broom, preparing to give chase. I really don't know why we still enjoy keep-away this much. Al zoomed off, smirking as I trailed him. On the ground he could leave me in his dust, but on brooms we were fairly equal, as far as speed went, anyway. We started in the middle of the pitch, and he headed for the goals, but I cut him off as he rounded the top of the tallest one, snatching the ball away from him. It sent me off balance, however, and I went into a spin, crashing back down.

I pulled up right before my feet would have slammed into the ground, and abandoned the broom, darting into the locker room directly to my right. Albus was right behind me, and I never made it to my planned destination of the shower stalls. Strong arms wrapped around me and lifted me off the ground, spinning me around until I was giddy with lightheadedness. I couldn't stop the shriek that bubbled out of my throat, and I dizzily clutched the ball to my chest when he finally set me down. He plucked the ball from my fingers, and stood in front of me, grinning.

Oh, yeah. _This_ is why we still like keep-away. Or at least why _I _like it.

"Cheater." I accused, going for a snarky, biting tone, but knowing my answering grin gave away any chance I had at a ticked-off façade. Albus shrugged, and wandered past me with an overly casual swagger back towards the pitch. As always, I chased after him. "No, seriously; it's not _fair,_" I whined as I lunged for the ball again.

The problem, I'd come to the conclusion, was that I didn't fit into any of the groups people liked to put other people into. I wasn't a 'sporty' girl, but loved playing casual games of Quidditch with my friends. While I liked dresses and enjoyed looking feminine, the whole fashion-is-pain thing scared me, along with the 'girly-girls' who spouted it. If it wasn't comfortable, I probably wouldn't wear it.

Which is why, among other reasons, I was sitting in the seventh year boys dormitories in stupidly named but incredibly comfy boyfriend sweatpants and a tee shirt from fourth year with more holes than I cared to count, planning a Graduation prank with the other Marauders.

"No Ty!" I shouted, as he opened his mouth yet again. So far all of his ideas had involved underwear in some form or fashion, and I'd tried every variation of his name(along with some choice hexes…Al's mom really is a_ lovely_ lady…)and nothing worked. So I was down to whatever was fastest to yell.

"Does anyone have a _good_ idea, that we can actually pull off?" Albus asked from the other side of the bed. We were each hanging off an end, I think subconsciously hoping the blood would carry some ideas with it as it rushed to our brains.

"We could…nah," Logan sat up at the next bed over, looking thrilled, before deflating.

"I've got it!" I sat up, bouncing the bed so much Al flopped off.

"Oi!" came his indignant protest from the floor.

"Sorry." I peeked over the other edge, giggling, then felt the mirth choke in my throat as I leaned over just as Al started to pull himself up. Almost nose to nose, I was way, way too close to the green eyes I'd spent copious amounts of time obsessing over third year(and, if we're being honest, fourth year and fifth year and…you get the picture, right?) And his lips. I was really, really, close to his lips, which immediately sent my brain wandering to empty hallways and stolen moments by the lake-

" 's okay." Al swallowed, then grinned at me, which was a bit blinding since I was (still) staring at his mouth, and pushed my shoulders back so he had room to get up. I flopped down again, wondering what we'd been talking about. I needed to stop giving in to these…thoughts. It wasn't doing me any good, just driving me insane. And sooner or later someone other than Rose would catch me out. The boys weren't in the mood to wait while I sorted myself out, though.

"Well, out with it Soph, let's hear your brilliant plan," Tyler teased.

Gulp. Brilliant plan? I had a plan? I was still trying to get over being so close to Al's face. That was the thing-after the last seven years, the boys were as familiar as family to me, and Albus, everything about him, was like coming home. But it, _he,_ still made my heart race and the butterflies climb up my throat.

I opened my mouth, tried to clear my throat. Albus leaned over me. "Are _you_ okay Phee?" he asked. He was the only one who called me Phee, don't ask me why.

_Oh, yeah, super. Thanks for shoving your face in mine again, I'm bloody _perfect_. _And I would have been too, if he actually had a reason, other than concern, for shoving his face down near mine. Speaking of which, _who_ _did he kiss_? It had been driving me crazy all week…stupid Claire and her stupid boy-crazy questions.

"Eh, yeah." I finally found my voice, and sat up. "So, I'm thinking we send a bunch of Howlers. Secrets, everything we've ever thought about the teachers, the other students, but couldn't say." An evil gleam came into the boys' eyes, and I quickly added, "It could be good stuff too! Not just a bunch of malicious crap!"

"It's perfect!" Al crowed, throwing an arm around my neck.

"Think of the possibilities." Drew said, already scribbling madly.

Al still hadn't let my neck go.

Logan was rubbing his hands together gleefully.

I was starting to get unnaturally hot.

"It's not totally horrible," Tyler conceded.

Albus finally removed his arm as he reached for his trunk. I tried not to feel too disappointed as he rummaged around. "Ah! I thought I was the one that got these," Albus said, pulling a box clearly marked "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes-prototypes", stamped all over with yellow caution stickers and waving it triumphantly. I rolled my eyes, but the guys were all over it. I'd been there when he'd packed them after the Christmas holidays, but he'd never told the boys about them, apparently.

"What do they do?" Logan asked as Al pried the lid off. He grinned evilly. "What _don't_ they do?"


	4. Chapter 4

The mid-Fifth YearAl and I had had a non-fight, the only kind we ever had. We didn't do battle with words, just silence. I still wasn't just what had made this non-fight any different than the ones before and after, which only lasted a few days at most, but for whatever reason he'd just shut down one Hogsmead trip when the other Marauders all had colds. It might have had something to do with the Brown-Clancy twin's finding him in front of the gates before I did, he'd seemed fine at breakfast. But he'd totally iced me out, and the feeling was so foreign I'd just ignored it, hoping I could thaw him, which only seemed to make it worse.

I'd retreated that evening, and chosen to wait for him to come to me. Well, in hindsight, all I did was ice him out the same way he'd done me. In my mind, he didn't care about me and was ignoring me, fine without my company. I can only imagine, now, how he felt, probably wondering what he'd done wrong just as much as I did. We barely spoke for months.

It still makes me cringe, the pain dulled but still a slight twinge like an old scar now and again. Rose and Mom told me for forgive, forget, _move forward_ and finally I listened. I'd spent so long doubting our friendship, my trust and confidence in men and buys ravaged by my father's problems and eventual abandonment. But, funnily enough, once I'd decided and hung out with the guys on a Saturday, participating like I hadn't in months, Albus had shocked me. He started _smiling_.

While the more cynical side of me pointed out that he'd been smiling before, and that the more I talked to him, and the fact that longer I sat next to him and craned over his shoulder the looser he seemed to get and the more he seemed to smile, was simply a coincidence.

But my new attitude demanded I acknowledge that maybe, just maybe, he'd missed me too.

Those lost months still bothered me sometimes. But right now, pacing in front of the Room of Requirement with Rose and Maddy looking on, probably wasn't the best time to be thinking about it.

With two weeks to go until graduation, and our NEWTS(and let me tell you, they weren't kidding about the 'nasty' bit. Just _vile_ is what it is!) freshly finished, the general consensus had been that one last post-exam game of Truth or Dare was in order, as tradition dictated. I'd been sent, with my two look outs, to make sure that the room provided everything we required, since the one time the guys had gone there'd been no food and after their trip to raid the kitchens by way of the ticklish pear, Al's Uncle Nevile had caught us within an hour, earning us all wrist slaps and more time in the greenhouse than I cared to remember.

_Ugh._ I stopped, and eyed the door that had just popped into existence. "That should just about do it." I yanked the door open, and the girls' followed.

Inside, the room was shimmering with jewel tones in the light from the fire in the huge hearth and more candles than I could count on low tables, heaping with enough food to feed the small army our boys and friends could pass for. And, my personal favorite, a huge semicircular sofa that opened towards the fireplace and would have plenty of room for all of us. This was why I did it-not only did I actually procure us food, _discreetly_, I had also mastered a certain ambiance that, although they wouldn't admit it, they liked better than there concept of _secret-room-with-somewhere-to-sit_…which had been the floor, by the way.

We'd been flopped on the sofa, talking about nothing in particular, for about twenty minutes when everybody else started to trickle in. Albus wandered over with a bunch of chocolate crème sandwich cookies and hovered close to where I was, until I yanked him down, demanding he share the sweets. "Oo, cookies! Gimme." Albus quirked an eyebrow at me, and responded by I batting my eyelashes and widening my blue eyes at him. "_Please_." He grinned and held his hand out, and I plucked two for myself. Drew arrived and Maddy shifted away from where she'd been curled against my side to snuggle into his arms. For someone perpetually cold and living in a centuries old castle, you'd think she'd wear, like, three layers all the time or something, but half the time she seemed to totally forget.

Al's arm was already brushing against mine, sending warmth flooding my limbs, and when Maddy moved I shifted closer, not caring what anyone else thought, and hoping he was oblivious. I just couldn't resist. The number of times I'd almost stuck my palm down next to his leg, just to see what he'd do, was ridiculous. I dropped my head back on the sofa as more people came in, talking loudly once the door shut. I blew a sigh as a group walked past, wondering what my problem was. He was my _best friend_. And while when I was younger I could generally turn off stay thoughts of hand holding and quiet words, even found them laughable in his presence, the last year they'd been popping up more and more, totally out of control.

We'd be just playing around, and I would somehow end up watching his mouth, wondering what his kiss might feel like. He'd cheat and pick me up during games, and I'd be haunted by the ghosts of his arms for days.

I loved him, and there didn't seem to be much I could do about it at this point-I was in too deep.

"Truth or dare Ty?" It was an hour into the game, and I knew I was playing with fire. I had the perfect dare planned for the boy who could never pick truth. Unfortunately, I almost never picked truth either, preferring to blare any idiocy or embarrassment on someone else's challenge than my own actions or feelings, and Tyler knew how to stick it to me as well as I knew how to get under his skin.

"Dare," he said quickly, cocky grin firmly in place, as was his hand on the knee of the girl next to him. What's-her-name from our Quidditch game had already moved on…or maybe Tyler had. It was always hard to tell, since his pat answer when we asked was "It didn't work out between us." Seriously, what kind of answer was that?

I could feel my grin growing wicked as I eyed him across the circle. "I dare you to not have any romantic physical contact with any girls until after Graduation."

The other Marauders all visibly choked, while Ty looked like he was throwing up in his mouth a bit. He gaped at me like a fish, and then slowly, pointedly, withdrew his hand from the girl's knee. He quirked an eyebrow at me, and I heard his silent proclamation-_It's on._

"Sophie," he cooed back, sugar sweet with a deadly glint in his brown eyes. I shrank back against Al, who nudged me. "You _did_ kinda ask for it," he muttered out the side of his mouth.

"Sophie, truth or dare?" his voice was a dare all by itself. No matter what I chose, he could and would torment me right back.

"Dare." I wasn't about to tell the truth, because I knew Tyler had what I liked to pretend was a deluded fantasy that I liked Al (for some reason he also thought Al liked me, which made me even more convinced he could be convinced he was making the whole thing up. I hoped he might like me too, but knew the odds were not in my favor, "one of the guys" that I was.)

His grin became maniacal, growing larger than I'd thought possible. "Sophie, I dare you to go stand out in the hall for fifteen minutes without any wand or _other_ things." No one outside our group or Al's family knew about the invisibility cloak James had nicked after his first year and was now Al's. Harry knew they had it, but hadn't taken it away from the boys. And I always carried a purse, which the guys mocked me for, but I had to have it. They didn't have to understand.

I dreaded the possibility of something going wrong, but there was no way out of it, and it was worth the paltry risk to see Tyler tormented for the next two weeks. I only wished I could make it last longer, but a month was our dare limit, or the end of school or the summer, depending on when we played. That was part of what made the post-exam games so popular-the dares only lasted for two weeks, and the truths did too, mostly, since who was going to remember stupid stuff all summer?

"Fine." I got up and stalked out the door, head held high and refusing to let Tyler see me freaked out.

After ten minutes, I was kind of bored, and the adrenaline was driving me nuts. Nick had floated through a wall after the first five minutes, and I'd almost screamed, even though I happened to like the friendly ghost. I'd sunk to the floor after that, but now I got up to pace the last few minutes away.

I'd just passed a bank of windows when I saw a broom cupboard ahead and tensed to turn around. I didn't want to know if anyone else was breaking curfew. I simultaneously heard a scuffling sound and smacked against something hard and warm, which wrapped around my torso.

A hand covered my mouth as a cloth tied itself over my eyes and I was hoisted in the air. "Lemme go! Tyler, put me down! Surviving an attempted kidnapping wasn't part of the dare!"

Someone chuckled darkly, and I was unceremoniously dumped on the ground. A hinge creaked, then the soft _snick_ of a door closing sounded, echoing in my head.

I sat nursing my head, which had smacked against something on the way and was beginning to throb. Male voices were talking, probably fairly loud, outside the door but I could barely hear over my labored breathing and the thudding of blood in my ears.

"Ha. _Attempted_ nothing, I don't do anything half way." Tyler bragged.

"Hum…" Logan said noncommittally.

"Are you sure this is a good idea dude?" Drew sounded dubious, which instantly freaked me out. Drew and I tended to have a similar idea of what was a bad idea and what wasn't. If Drew was worried, I probably should be too.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I didn't even cheat! If I'm not going to be doing anything the next two weeks, might as well kick someone else in the arse and make them get on with it already."

"What if she gets sick?" Drew sounded farther away.

"She'll be fine," Ty proclaimed, "now let's get back before we get caught or your girlfriend comes looking for all of us."

Yeah, sure I'd be fine. Right. While St. Mungo's could cure just about anything, I'd had my disease for years by the time I was inducted into the Wizarding world, and by then, they couldn't do anything about the rogue cells that had chewed up my pancreas and left me with diabetes. The guys thought I was being hyper keeping my bag, along with a test kit and sugar, with me all the time, but I could get a high or low blood sugar really fast.

The insulin pump delivered my synthetic insulin via a tiny I.V. in my stomach, but depending on how long Ty left me here, I could get really sick.

I was starting to hyperventilate when something brushed my back. I jumped and my knee hit someone's thigh, which was about the time I realized that someone else was breathing, much closer to my ear than a second ago.

"Everything's gonna be fine Phee."

_A/N: hehe, I always wanted to do an evil cliffie, but could never find a good spot. Now I have….Muhahaha! I'm working on the next chapter now, so it should get up pretty fast ;)_


	5. Chapter 5

My heart just about stopped. _Albus._ Locked with me in what I'd come to realize was a broom cupboard, for however long Tyler decided to leave us.

I groaned, hoping I'd just wake up from this really, really awful nightmare. "Phee, it'll be fine, he'll come back, or Maddy'll find us when you're not in the dorm."

I growled. "Tyler is so dead," was my opening line. If I had to get Aunt Hermione _and_ Al's Mum to help me, I _would_ hex that boy into oblivion.

Al chuckled. My heart picked back up again, then stuttered as I relaxed and my knee flopped down onto his leg. I suddenly remembered Tyler's proud "I didn't even cheat!" If he didn't cheat, that meant Albus somehow got dared into this.

"How are you here?" I asked suspiciously.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he sing-songed, and I elbowed him in the stomach. "Fine," he said, giving in twice as fast as usual. "That girl Tyler was with? She was feeling a bit vindictive after your dare. So, uh, she kinda dared me to duel Tyler in the hall, and I think she put a body bind on my from the door, cause I got stiff and fell over. Then he took my wand and shoved me in here."

I took that in for a few minutes. "And what about Drew?" I finally asked, wondering how he'd gotten in the middle of it.

"He must have heard something and come out. You know how good his ears are."

"So hopefully he'll break us out sooner rather than later," I said hopefully.

"I'm not so sure. I caught some kind of long spell, but I kinda blacked out after the body bind and hitting the floor and I was just coming around, so I don't know what it did." He sounded sheepish.

"Greeeat."

"Yeah."

And then silence. Total, deafening silence. I could hear him breathing, could almost feel it in my hair, could almost hear his heart beating. My own was thundering like a herd of wild dragons (do they even have herds? Are they flocks, since they can fly? Why do I care?), and I could practically feel the minutes ticking by. My calculated risk to get Tyler had gone horribly wrong. Normally I'd be fine without my stuff for a while, but once I got stressed out there was no telling what my body would do, left to its own defunct devices.

"Al…?" I could hear my voice wavering, and hated myself for it. But if there was one person I was okay with being helpless around, it was him.

"It's gonna be fine Phee. I won't let anything happen to you." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself, too.

"What if I pass out?" I asked. I never had, but if my blood sugar went too low it was a very real possibility. It scared me out of my mind. While most of my friends were finishing their Third Year freak out over boggarts, I was busy worrying if I'd wake up every morning (My own prone body had been one of my boggarts; the other, my father.)

"We'll talk…Remember that time James stole all of the Professor's underwear?"

"For Valentine's Day," I chuckled. James had defiantly made the most of his last year at Hogwarts. "Oh, what about Teddy and Toire, when they finally told everyone?"

"At the big dinner for Vic's graduation. They thought they'd been so sneaky. Uncle George knew a whole year before."

"Extendable ears. Everyone should just assume they the whole family can hear them if they don't cast a muffling spell."

"What about Claire?" Al crowed. "She can't even remember that I have _regular_ ears, I'll be sitting right there and she's trying to tell you secrets."

I laughed. "Yeah, but it's funny. Even if it makes her look like a drip."

He snorted, and I bumped his shoulder with mine. Somehow, I'd ended up next to him, although I really wasn't sure how there was enough space in the tiny cupboard for both of us against one wall.

"Do you remember when James put lipstick and a sticking charm on Uncle Percy?" I asked. It had been my first summer with the extended Weasley family, and I'd been shocked by all the shenanigans the kids (and adults…) had gotten up to, and sometimes, away with. By the next summer I'd felt, and been treated like, yet another cousin, and James had pronounced, with his own flair, that I needed to "ditch the mister and missus crap and call 'em what we do!" He'd said this rather loudly and close to my face, and I'd jumped a bit, so startled I'd almost dropped the sausage I was eating, but Al and Lily had chimed and agreed.

"That was priceless. Do you still have that picture of him waking up?" Al asked. I thought for a minute, then remembered the photo that showed James tickling a feather under the lipsticked-Percy's nose.

"Yup, in the summer scrapbook," I told him. I collected moments, memories. There was a scrapbook for every school year, and one that covered every summer since the one after First Year. Ticket stubs, funny stories, photos, paper with notes or games to stupid doodles. My computer had videos of everything from Quidditch games to car rides to birthdays. It was nice to be able to immerse myself in happy moments when things got hard or sad.

"You know what I just remembered?" I asked, already giggling. "Those girls before Fifth Year who wouldn't leave you alone at Diagon Ally."

Albus groaned. He didn't find the amount of female attention he got quite as amusing as I did. Really, I just liked the looks on their faces when they saw how close we were, and yet unrelated. Somehow they almost always knew he was Harry Potter's son, but couldn't manage to hold in their brains that no, I was not his sister, because he's only got one, and she has _red_ hair.

I was doubled over laughing, and I could feel his sour expression in the dark. "It was _funny_," I protested. He harrumphed and elbowed me as he crossed his arms. I took that as my cue to stop giggling, and managed to quiet myself.

Once I'd calmed down I started feeling really sleepy. I scooted my butt down on the floor and laid my head down on Al's shoulder. He relaxed, and I listened to his breathing.

Five minutes later I was pleasantly drowsy. "Al?" I asked in a small voice, words bubbling up my throat seemingly by themselves, "Who did you kiss?"

He sucked in a breath, and I dimly thought that that was probably not a good thing.

Maybe I shouldn't have asked that.

Why wouldn't I ask? I wanted to know.

He must have turned his head because his breath was stirring the hairs that had fallen over my face. "Phee…" he sounded worried.

"_Mmmh…_" I hummed at him, snuggling closer. So sleepy. My head slid down and I curled a hand into his shirt. His heart beat steadily under my ear as I drifted off.

_A/N: dumdumduuun…. O.o_

_I'll update soon. In the meantime, pretty please drop me a review, it'll make it happen faster, lol ^_^_


	6. Chapter 6

_Sophie POV:_

When I woke up the sun stabbed my eyes, while my stomach rolled and my head pounded out a lovely beat. In short, I felt hung over. Not that I'd know, since the strongest thing I'd ever had was butterbeer, which I was still trying to figure out if it was actually, you know, alcoholic. But I was pretty sure this was how it felt. I called it a diabetic hang over, since I felt so bad. My hand caught on something warm as I yanked the blankets up over my head and groaned.

"Phee?"

"Mmuh?" I said, feeling like I had cotton balls in my mouth.

"She's awake!" I heard Al whisper-yell to someone, then Maddy's jasmine perfume hit my nose as the bed dipped and a hand rubbed my back through the covers. The normally soothing motion grated, my skin felt like someone had run over it with sandpaper-another fun side effect was increased sensitivity, and I squirmed away from her.

"Sorry Soph," she apologized as I heard who I assumed was the nurse bustle up, "I think you're going to have to come out now."

"No light." I said sulkily. I tended to be reduced to about three years old after a bad blood sugar episode.

"I'm on it." I heard Al get up and start pulling curtains shut. My cave under the covers got dimmer, and I peeked out to find Madame Pritchard waiting with clipboard and wand. It was way better than the Muggle methods, at least. Albus was back in the chair right by my head, watching me like a hawk. Maddy was on my other side, and Rose was standing by the door talking to someone, probably my mom, on the phone. The other boys were nowhere to be found, but when I saw Tyler…

Once my tests were done, I was sentenced to bi-hourly blood sugar checks and a return trip the next day, confined to Gryffindor Tower and my friends instructed to watch me and make sure I had my stuff with me. I discovered I'd had to have the glucose shot in my thigh, all the way in my muscle. There was already an ugly purple bruise around the injection site, and the whole area was tender. Al was studiously looking away as I lifted the gown after Madame Pritchard told me, but my gasp at the ugly stain of blood under my skin and hiss of pain when I glanced my fingers over it brought his gaze. A stricken look seemed to pass over his face as his eyes bounced off it and onto my eyes. I quickly yanked the gown down, ashamed for a reason I wasn't sure I wanted to think about, while he gave me a look that was part sorrow, part something I couldn't name. I swung my legs over the edge, wincing as I went, as Maddy passed me my softest, oldest jeans and a hoodie, while Rose dragged Al out to talk to the boys.

_Al POV:_

_Tyler is so dead._ I stalked out of the infirmary and directed a laser-level death glare at one of my oldest friends. We could all be immature sometimes, but daring Sophie to go out there without her medical stuff? And then _leaving_ her, after stressing her out? What kind of _idiot_…

Normally I didn't really care what anyone else did, and let the Prefects and Professors deal with the vagrants, especially when they were my friends. But I'd given Uncle Nevile an earful about this one. Tyler had already been sentenced to the greenhouses for three hours a day until graduation, but I had a feeling Hagrid might steal him away for a few select jobs with his _pets_.

"Bro, I'm really sorry." Tyler started forward, and I couldn't help the snort of disgust that came out.

"I don't think _bro_-ing him is such a good idea right now," my cousin advised, dishing out her own glare.

"I thought she'd be fine," he protested. Logan was silently watching everything, and Drew looked wracked with guilt. Tyler _had_ charmed his mouth shut, luckily his girlfriend hadn't been similarly impaired. As predicted, Maddy had found us, although faster than I'd expected; she came looking before going back to the dorm. She said she would have come sooner, but since I was missing too she figured Soph was with me and safe.

Yeah, safe; safe and sound, unconscious in my arms. I growled as I remembered the feeling of helplessness, and Drew stopped in his tracks from where he'd been sidling over. I jerked my head at him and he resumed walking. "Albus, I'm so sorry, you gotta believe me, I thought I was going to puke I was so worried." I watched the torment playing across his face, and held up my fist for a friendly, but very manly, bump.

"I know. There wasn't anything you could have done about it. But Ty's not getting off the hook so easily. In fact, I think he needs to dance a bit first." I was beyond ticked off. Having your best friend almost die in your arms could do that to a guy. I remembered the first time I'd realized that Sophie's totally treatable disease could actually kill her if it wasn't regulated closely enough. Last night had just made it hit home even harder.

Tyler reached placating hands out to me again, and I snapped. "She _passed out!_ She could have died, do you realize that?" I shouted. "They had to give her the glucose shot, she's never, ever needed it before, and she was so proud of herself for being careful and not needing it. Not just a little needle like her I.V.s for the insulin pump, Ty. This one didn't just slip a few millimeters in, it hit her muscles. Madame Pritchard said she'd be sore for days, especially since she doesn't know what she's doing with Muggle needles. She's got a bruise. _She hurts and it's your fault_!

"Do you even care?" I asked, quiet and dangerously close to hitting him, which Logan and Drew had already stopped me from doing once. Although I think Logan might have gotten a nice, hard punch to his gut in when no one was looking, because he's flexing his hand and Ty's holding his side. Good for him, I think, but I wish it was me. Although I'm not sure I'd be able to stop at one punch, which is saying a lot for the guy who doesn't enjoy killing the bugs that come in the house.

I met his eyes then, aware that I might have crossed a line too. An idiot he may be, but every single one of us cared about Phee, in our own ways, and we all knew it. He looked at me, all pain and torment and grief.

Sophie wobbled out then, Maddy's arm around her waist. She'd taken her make up off, and she looked even paler than a few minutes ago without that red stuff girls stick on their cheeks. All of her long brown hair was pulled over one shoulder, which she'd hunched in, making the bits of collar bone the hoodie didn't cover stick out more than normal. The blue-green eyes that were normally sparkling with a joke or giggle were slightly unfocused, and dark purple stained the skin underneath.

She darted a glance around, and her eyes stopped on me. She gave me a shaky, embarrassed smile and I tried to smile back. She turned towards Rose, who was slipping her arm around her waist on the opposite side from Maddy and I took the opportunity to shoot another dirty look at Tyler, who looked like a kicked puppy.

_Sophie POV:_

We made it back to the common room, and I lay down on the sofa while Maddy dashed up to our dorm for my favorite fleece blanket and some knee socks. I'd started chilling, and everyone was hovering. Well, everyone except Tyler. Uncle Nevile had shown up right after I came out to check on me and drag Tyler off to his detention. The now-ex-fling was also getting punished, I found out, although not as severely; Gryffindor, Slytherin and Ravenclaw had each lost fifty points, since Rose, Scorpius and the boys had all been busted after calling for help for me.

Claire trailed downstairs after an hour, and took in the scene-me, huddled on the sofa, the girls' in the armchairs on either end, Albus sitting under my feet, Drew(who was leaning against Maddy's legs) and Logan on the floor in front of us playing their second game of Wizards' Chess. Scorpius had just left to find a house elf to help him get us some breakfast. "What happened?" She was still rubbing sleep out of her eyes. She liked to think she was so grown up, but it seemed like half the time she was still acting like the little girl I was convinced she still was. Which was good and cute, but also kinda funny and sort of gave me whiplash. In her nightgown, hair unbrushed and face unwashed, still sporting pillow creases, she was the baby sister still saw her as, even while she blossomed into a young lady(not that she wants to be a lady, mind you. She wants to be a tom-boy, I think, while still wearing dresses. Actually, she doesn't know what she wants…but do any of us?)

I knew if I told her what Tyler had done she'd go nuts and run off at the mouth to everyone, all the time, until the end of the summer, and having the two of them within anywhere near each other would be impossible.

"I went really low, got kind of sick. I've got to stay in the tower today," I summarized.

"Oooh!" she ran over and threw herself on me. "You poor thing, will you live?" She was such a drama queen, but it was nice to see her being sweet for once. She really was a good person, the hormones just got in the way of that sometimes, I thought.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Now get off, you're hurting me, calm down and go get some breakfast."

"Fine," she said, sulking a bit and eyeing me in concern.

"Go on," I prodded her away, and as she reached the portrait hole, tacked on, "and make sure you have something _healthy_. Not just sugary crap." I couldn't help mothering her sometimes, since Mum wasn't around and Claire could be kind of…_irresponsible_.

The portrait hole slammed. Moment over.

_Al POV:_

It took me a week to finally forgive Tyler, which was three days longer than Phee, although I still couldn't help myself from eyeing him distrustfully, especially when he was anywhere near Sophie. Every time she wore shorts you could see the purple and green-tinged stain on her leg where the bruise was slowly healing, reminding me all the while of her mortality and the ordeal she'd had to go through.

_Sophie POV:_

They sat us alphabetically for graduation, not by House, so Al and I were the only ones who got to sit together. Because of this, Al and I were also the ones who were setting off the beginning of the prank. The other guys were responsible for the smaller stuff, but Al was setting off the biggest stuff from Uncle George's shop, and I had all the Howlers stuffed in a magically expanded clutch.

Al was ready from the first throat-clearing to start up, so most of the speeches sounded like this to me-

"…and as you go out into the world-"

"Phee, come on! Let's do it now, this is so boring…"

"No."

…

"As I look back on all the years we've spent together-" This was McGonagall.

"_Soph_, one the count of three. One," he raised his wand.

I snatched it away from him and glared. "Al, it's going to be epic no matter when we do it."

Big sigh from the wandless boy next to me.

…

"Abbot, Connor. Congradula-"

Already starting to flourish his wand, "_Sophie!_" I batted it down, since he had a death grip on the thing this time.

"I for one want my diploma before I make all hell break loose, thank you very much," I hissed at him. He rolled his eyes at my practical objection, but gave up for the moment.

…

I was barely back in my seat, clutching the scroll declaring me graduated from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry when Al started muttering the first spell. "What about Rose? She'll kill you…and me."

Gigantic sigh, weary, slightly chagrinned nod. "Drew too," he whispered back. It was a good thing we were sitting together. He started bouncing his seat though, poking me and mocking everyone from the girl staring dreamily at the guy in front of her to the Professors sitting quietly in a row on the stage.

Finally, "Zambini, Katrina," was handed her diploma and I nodded at Al. He started muttering spells while I opened my sapphire blue clutch. The Howlers poured out and swarmed around the hall, searching for their recipients. At first it had been just us and our circle of friends writing them, but word slowly got around to the other Seventh Years and we began finding red envelopes on our desk chairs, in our book bags, or slipped to us in the halls and our common rooms. I don't think a single Seventh Year missed the opportunity to say something to someone before we walked out the doors for our final time as students. I'd found it kind of cathartic, writing all those notes to people, not that the biggest secret of my education at Hogwarts had made it into my stack-that I loved my best friend.

Al's spells finally took effect, and the room began shifting. Fireworks blasted, the flames undying, filling the room with flickering kaleidoscopic light as Howlers yelled.

"I'M SORRY I DIDN'T TRY HARDER."

"I WISH WE WERE STILL FRIENDS."

"I'VE LOVED YOU SINCE FOURTH YEAR."

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE A GREAT TEACHER, BUT MY FRIEND'S WOULDN'T HAVE UNDERSTOOD THAT I LIKED YOUR CLASS."

Pandemonium broke out as students realized that not only were fireworks going off inside, but they weren't going out, and Howlers screamed at them. McGonagall was watching the whole scene in bemusement next to Uncle Nevile, although Binns didn't look quite so…ah, relaxed. It might have had something to do with his Howlers actually going _into_ his ears, though.

The light show was slowly washed away by water as the boys all threw small cerulean orbs into the air, which expanded, floating to the ceiling and then exploded against the magically concealed wood. Droplets splattered down, hissing as they hit the fireworks, making the colors bleed out until the entire room was bathed in shimmering blue light. It appeared as though we were underwater, complete with floating hair and clothes, dappled light falling on everyone as the last of the Howlers found their owners.

Finally, deafening silence fell, and everyone looked around in amazement. At the quiet, the water began condensing, forming bubbles that swirled through the room on the air currents. Tyler bounded up to the front of the room, leaped onto the stage and bellowed in a magically amplified voice "We're free!" He then took a boy and jumped back into the throng. The bubbles slowly sank as people began talking again. The other Marauders, and Maddy and Rose and Scorpius and family and friends all began slogging through the bubbles on the floor towards the end of our row. I guess the tornado of Howlers kind of gave me, us, away to everyone. We pushed through people and met them, everyone talking at once. Mom caught my eye and point towards the doors. "Outside?" she yelled over the din. I nodded, and began moving. Everyone followed, and we broke out into the sunshine together.

I looked around at my friend, bubbles in their hair and on their clothes, grins stretching faces wide.

"We did it!" the words bubbled out of me along with a thrilled laugh as Al whooped beside me.

_A/N: So, they're graduated…what's going to happen next? I have plans, big big plans…_

_But first, let me know what you thought, especially of Albus' point of view(which I think I managed to pull off very well and not spoil anything), and Sophie's diabetes. And the prank…hehe. I wish we had magic…all the things I could do…_

_Anyway, drop me a review ^_^_


	7. Chapter 7

"Really, I feel so bad about this," Mum fluttered around as I waved my wand and levitated all of my things into magically expanded boxes.

"Mum, its fine. I was going to be moving next month anyway, and while the time with you at home would have been nice, this'll work too. And we had to do _something_ about Claire. It makes the most sense," I assured her.

She nodded, and wandered out to check on the banging, temper-tantrum noises coming from said-little-sister's room.

Mum was a consultant who handled high-profile mergers, and while she'd done minimal traveling when we were younger, as soon as Claire got into Hogwarts and Mum's boss found out, she'd been on the road two to three weeks a month. Last summer she'd managed to stay home, only leaving for a week at a time, during which she'd gotten various friends to stay and keep Claire (and me, officially) in line. But this time she'd be gone for almost a month, and no way to not go since it was one of the largest deals in the company's history.

Harry and Ginny had graciously offered to have both of us stay for the month, to which Mum almost collapsed in relief and Al and I raise our eyebrows in a shared 'do-they-have-_any_-clue-what-they've-just-gotten-themselves-in-for' moment.

And that's how I wound up in one of the Potter's guest rooms, in between Lily and Claire's rooms and across from Al, for the first month of my post-Hogwarts life.

We all had a month before starting our jobs or training, hence the time to lounge around at the Potters. The big plan was for the boys to share a flat in the same building as Rose, Maddy and I, since we'd all be in London. I was going to be writing for the Daily Prophet, Al and Logan were training to be Aurors, Tyler had been recruited by the Canon's to play Quidditch, while Rose and Maddy were going into the same pediatric healing course.

Scorpius had secured a position as a curse-breaker for Gringot's, but Mark was the mystery. He hadn't told anyone what his post-graduation plans were, so of course everyone wanted to know. Okay, so us girls were way more intrigued than the guys, but they're just weird and non-meddling like that.

"Hey," Lily wandered in as I unpacked my clothes and a few others things I deemed necessities, although most of my stuff would be staying in the closest in boxes.

"Hi," I glanced up, surprised. I'd thought she was down by the pool.

"How's Claire taking the extended stay?" she asked, and I slumped. The fit she'd thrown when she'd found out had been epic, tempered only by the knowledge that she'd be able to 'hang out' with me and my friends, most specifically Al, for the whole month before we ran off and "abandoned her."

"Er, not so well," I admitted, folding tee shirts and shorts into drawers.

Lily dragged her toe along the hardwood flooring, and peeked up at me from under her red-gold eyelashes. A black, semi-wet tankini poked out from the neckline of her cover up and she pulled the elastic out of her hair, shaking down the bun. "Mmm," she hummed in response.

"Lil, is something bothering you?" I asked gently. She was like a younger sister to me, but we weren't super close, and it wasn't like she came running to me every five seconds about boy trouble or other stuff.

"Uh…" she looked sheepishly around the pale green and soft brown room.

James chose that moment to burst in, panting and doubled over laughing, while still managing to look panicked. It was like he was amused _and_ scared _and_ freaked out by something. "Soph…Claire…pool…boys…and…_boobs_," I stared at him in shock, while Lily began looking chagrinned. James caught some of his breath and finished, "Al said to come get you."

I ran out of the room like Fluffy was after me, down the hall, tripping over the stairs, racing through the breezeway through the house to the backyard. The riotous colors of Ginny's well-tended garden blurred across my vision as I skidded through the open door-

And was brought to a screeching halt by an arm wrapped firmly around my waist. "Oof." The air left my lungs in a whoosh as my side was pulled securely up against Al's chest. "Just take a look," he said in a low voice. "I noticed Lily eyeing her, and them, and then she started to look worried and left, so I was watching, and then he walked over, so I sent James."

Look I did, Albus's arm still around my waist for some reason, over at the curving pool where we'd spent so many lazy summer days. Ginny's garden was huge and sprawling, and during the summer the pool was surrounded by lush grasses and flowering plants. The cobblestoned patio surrounding the pool was smattered with chaise lounge chairs, beach towels and various pool toys and sporting goods.

My eyes found Tyler first, chatting to a girl while spiking a volley ball at her in the shallow end. She was pretty, although not Tyler's usual type, sporting a wet bun, no visible make up and short-sleeved rash guard.

Some girls Lily's age, including a few I recognized from school, lay around sunning themselves, bottles of high SPF sun block belying the impression that they were tanning.

It was near the deep end that the trouble was. Three boys, also around Lily's age, were challenging each other to see who could make the biggest splash. A fourth fifteen year old was attempting to make a splash with my baby sister.

She had gone off the deep end herself, it seemed, in a loud neon swimsuit I'd never seen before. After she'd found an outrageously tiny tankini that showed off more skin than Mum could believe came labeled as anything other than _bi_kini, she'd sentenced Claire to one pieces only. This, while it _was_ a one piece, had such huge cut outs on the sides that it looked like a bikini with a string attaching the top to the bottoms. Add in a plunging neckline, and Claire's sudden growth spurt the last few months and I could see where James' incredulous exclamation at the end of his breathless announcement had come to be.

The surfer-dude looking blond who was current chatting up my sister flipped his hair out of his eyes-aren't boys with hair in their eyes always trouble?-and leaned closer, touching her arm.

I growled, and Al tightened his grip on me. My loose tank top with its flowy asymmetrical hem was bunched up from Al's hands, and his thumb had found its way under the fabric to rest on the skin covering my hip bone. Warmth shot through me that had nothing to do with the June sun once I noticed, and I shook myself. _Ugh. _Back on task-stopping my sister from making an (even bigger) idiot out of herself. It figured Ginny had to coach the Harpies the first day we were here, otherwise we could just let her deal with it, but she wouldn't be back for hours.

I tried to pry myself from his grip, but it wasn't working. "Wasn't the whole point of you guys staying her that you wouldn't have to 'parent' Claire, especially since she never listens to you?" James asked, watching in amusement as I squirmed.

"Yes, but _look_ at her!" I whisper-shrieked, fluttering my hands towards the couple who were now play-wrestling.

James made a face. "Yeah, I'm trying not to. That," he waved a hand in her general direction while keeping his gaze studiously away from the pool area, "is just a little mature for twelve, and a little more than I want to see of someone I think of as a sister." Lily smirked at him, and I went limp in Al's arms. If James was freaked out, it was every bit as bad as I thought it was.

"Phee, you don't have to drag her in by her ear and make her change. Let her think it was _her_ idea." Albus winked, and I wrinkled my forehead in confusion before realizing what he meant. Ginny was good for _so many_ things.

"Oh," I grinned wickedly and groped around for my wand. "It's up in my room," I whined, "stupid shorts. Al smirked down at me and pulled his want out of the insanely long pocket in his cargo shorts. He muttered the spell and then quickly shoved it back in his pocket. Logan chose that moment to wander out from the hall, having let himself in apparently.

"Hey, wha-" his voice was abruptly muffled as Lily slapped her hand over his mouth. He glanced down tolerantly at her, and raised his eyebrows in question at Al and I. "Just watch," I told him.

"Did you do what I think you did?" Lily asked, cautiously removing her hands from Logan's mouth.

"The thing with the birds?" When Lily nodded, Albus let an evil smirk crawl across his face. His arms loosened, and I slid forward to watch the impending show.

Sure enough, the birds Al had conjured flew out of the closest tree, like they'd been there the whole time and flew over Claire and surfer-boy, dropping, ah, how shall I put this politely? Birdy _blessings_. Very black, very staining, very stinky _blessings_. In other words, something that would completely ruin the offending swim suit and hopefully scare off the boy.

Claire shrieked and raced for the house. We all turned to each other and started talking about random things like the weather, and in Al's case, "When's lunch? I'm hungry!" Claire went past, and I pretended to be shocked.

"Oh, sweetie, are you okay?" I asked. I really did feel bad for her. I wished she would just calm down, and be the sweet girl I used to know all the time, instead of once in a blue moon.

"Those stupid birds just pooped on me, and now my new suit is probably ruined!" she wailed, shaking with barely suppressed disgust. The spell was engineered so that it stained and saturated whatever it hit with the scent, but I wasn't about to tell her that.

"Go get cleaned up, you'll be fine. You've got other suits," _Mum-approved suits,_ I added mentally, "I'm going to go see about lunch, it should be ready by the time you're cleaned up."

"Okay," she sniffled, then pussyfooted into the house, eyeing her arms and the black spots on them.

"I hope you didn't care about that bloke," James said to Lily, who waved a hand dismissively.

"He's Carter's cousin, never seen him before in my life, don't really care to ever see him again if _that's_ what he wants, anyway." She said, then slapped both hands over her mouth, eyes widening as she looked at me.

"I know what you meant, Lil," I reassured her. "That's why Mum doesn't let her parade around like that. I don't even know how she got that thing in the first place."

"Why did you bring it up James, is he freaking out?" For whatever reason, she hadn't turned back towards the pool, instead facing Logan and James.

James snickered. "He did a very interesting dance, and now he's running away…oh, he appears to have started screaming!"

"Oh, well," I smirked, not minding at all that he'd gotten caught in our collective crosshairs; served him right.

"You know, I wasn't kidding about the food," Al muttered as his stomach let out an almighty grumble.

Ginny had left stuff for fish and chips, and I slid it all into the oven with practiced ease. Fifteen minutes later, I had everything in bowls, Lily's friends had cleared out and we were all sitting around the table as Claire trailed downstairs in a tiered dress and wet hair, contrite as could be and girlish again. "Food?" she asked hopefully. James kicked out the chair across from him, and she plunked down and reached for the chips Al was just setting down.

He shoved one in his mouth, then started grumbling under his breath and got up. After several minutes of listening to him riffling through the fridge I turned in my chair. "What're you looking for?"

"The vinegar." He told me, his tone of voice clearly conveying he wondered what I was going to do about it. I glanced over at Lily, completely engrossed in eating her own food, and pushed back my chair. After hip checking him over so we both stood in front of the open fridge I scanned the cubbies in the door for the trademark bottle neck. I saw it, plucked it up and deposited it in his hand.

I was halfway back to my seat when I heard him sputtering and turned around. A mixture of confusion and awe was painted across his face. "How is it you know where stuff is in my fridge better than I do?"

I giggled. "It's a gift."

He rolled his eyes, and I bumped his shoulder as he slid back into the seat next to mine.

"Thanks, Phee."

"What would you do without me?" I sing-songed teasingly. Not expecting a reply. But I barely caught him muttering something under his breath that sounded an awful lot like "I have no clue."

Hmm. Interesting.

_A/N: kind of just a fluffy filler chapter, but I wanted something to show the other Potter kids and Soph together. Plus, I sat down to write today and this is just what came out :P_

_Drop me a review and lemme know what you think!_


	8. Chapter 8

"Why do you hate me?" a small voice asks from the doorway to the kitchen about week later. Lily and I were making dinner for Ginny since she had coaching all day, but Lil had stepped outside to get some basil for the pizza.

"What?" my head whipped around from where I'd been focused on kneading the pizza dough and my eyes found Claire leaning on the door jam, eyebrows all scrunched up.

"You're always mad at me, we never do anything together, and now you're moving to London and I'll have to go back to Hogwarts." She dropped into one of the kitchen chairs despondently.

I processed for a minute. She was so difficult, always snapping and biting back whenever I tried to talk to her. Maybe I mothered her a little too much, but I couldn't just watch her spin out of control. It was just too headache inducing to try and interact with her when she was being so difficult and she wouldn't even listen to what I said, anyway. So I supposed I'd pretty much given up on her the last few months, which was really very sad.

"Claire…" I was at a loss for what to tell her. Somehow, I didn't think _you're a brat and I'm sick of your attitude_ would wipe the heartbroken look off her face, which was my end goal. Although she _did_ need to change, and she _was_ asking…

"You've just been really difficult. And I don't want to get stressed out because you're busy letting your hormones dictate you mood and how you treat people." I could see the steam starting to come out of her ears.

Figuratively.

I _think_.

"I love you," I added. "But you're out of control. I want my sweet baby sister back, even if she's not so small anymore." I gave the dough a final knead and then began working it out flat.

Claire sat at the table quietly for a minute or two, seemingly deep in thought.

"I'm sorry. I'll try harder. Just don't forget about me, okay?" she finally said, jumping up and theatrically throwing her arms around my middle.

"Woah, trying to roll dough here!" I reminded her. "I could never forget about you," I assured her, "you're too much trouble." I teased. I was still frustrated with her, but I'd deal with that later, by myself. As long as she didn't relapse, it was in the past and if I expected her to move past it I'd have to as well. She huffed against my side, then snatched some grated cheese from the bowl on the counter and wandered towards the den.

Lily somehow managed to time her re-entrance for that exact moment, with all the boys, who'd been playing Quidditch in the meadow. "I figured I'd better call them in or they'd never be clean in time for the food. And I don't want to sit at a table full of stinky boys."

"Men," James reminded her, then smirked at the newly graduated boys. "Or, rather, _man_."

"Hey!" they all chorused. James grinned, then ran up the back stairs, probably trying to beat the shower rush. The rest of the guys trailed after him, Logan bringing up the rear. He bee lined to the counter and pinched some pepperoni, then turned towards the stairs.

Lily was between him and the steps, and as he walked, I watched a grin inch over his face. "So, Lil, you don't like stinky boys, huh?" he asked causally. She looked up from rinsing the basil and wrinkled her nose. His grin turned evil, and he slung an arm around her shoulder, then another around her front, effectively trapping her.

"Logan, stop," Lily giggled, ineffectively pushing him as he grinned down at her.

Wait. _Giggled_? Hmmm…

"Hump." He pouted, then let her go and went upstairs. She watched him go, then turned back to the sink, a slight smile playing around the corners of her lips.

She didn't…like him? He wasn't…flirting? Did she? Was he?

Oh boy.

"Thanks girls," Ginny said as she came down the back stairs with wet hair and found Lily, Claire and I finishing a salad, setting the table and stirring brownies, respectively.

"No problem," I assured her as Logan and Ty pounded down the stairs behind her and the others trailed in from the den along with Harry.

"Food?" Al asked hopefully, peering around the kitchen.

"Just about," I answered. Lily walked past him with the salad bowl and pinched a piece of lettuce.

"Here, this should help." She shoved to towards his mouth and he jumped back like it was going to bite him.

"Nuhuh. _This_," he headed towards me as I poured the brownie batter into a pan, "is the good stuff." And with that he stuck his finger under the cascade of chocolate.

"_Albus_!" Ginny scolded, as her husband walked over and swiped some batter on two fingers.

"_Harry_!" I mimicked, and swatted him laughing as he darted away, sucking one finger. I finished scraping the bowl and turned towards the sink just in time to see him pushing his still-chocolate-covered finger towards Ginny. She scowled at him, and he pulled her closed by the waist, wiggling his eyebrows at her. You could see the tension leave her, and she smiled, a little begrudgingly, but she still licked chocolate off his finger, then kissed him.

"Ugh, seriously guys?" James asked, sighing dramatically. I started. It hadn't even occurred to me that it was weird, at least not for the reason-embarrassment-James was complaining. I really had no memory of my parents' happy together, vague, hazy ones from when I was tiny, before Claire was born. Once I got old enough to be able to really form concrete memories, they'd already started fighting, he'd already starting sliding downhill, changing into the person who wasn't my Daddy.

Watching Ginny and Harry over the years, that was what had convinced me that marriage was something that could work long term, was something solid and safe and lasting. Harry and Al had proven to me that men weren't all bad, that they didn't all turn out like my father had; Harry with his wife and kids, Al always standing beside me. I smiled slightly, remembering the walls I'd built up, how I'd sworn in Second Year I never wanted to get married, and snuck a glance over at Albus. Even if we never got together, he and his family had given me the gift of believing again that I could create one of my own.

He was across the room from me, watching his parents too, who were now facing most of the kids, each with an arm around the other's waist, their profile towards both Al and I. As I absent-mindedly set the bowl in the sink and ran water in it, still watching All, he glanced over at me. _Busted_. I smiled at him quickly and bit my lip as I glanced away, hurriedly shutting off the tap as the bowl begins to overflow.


	9. Chapter 9

We make a day trip to Shell Cottage a few days later; all of the cousins are congregating, and we spend most of the day down on the beach, Claire in a Mum-approved one piece and spending most of her time with Lucy, Molly and Roxanne.

Logan tossed Lily into the waves, and she came up sputtering, giving chase in the waves and somehow managing to catch him. He lets her dunk him, and I think I see him push a wet strand of copper hair out of her eyes. The more I watch them together, the more I wonder if something's going on.

I'm tossing a Quaffle back and forth with the guys when it goes flying by the cliff face, and Ty goes to retrieve it. He stops and gestures everyone over, but by the time I wander over, the boys are deep in a dank cave. Yuck. I go back to the beach to wait for them to come back out and watch Scorpius dunk Rose in the surf. As I continue walking, my Frisbee sails right past my face, straight into the hands of a boy who is definitely _not_ a Weasley cousin or family friend.

But passably cute.

And it was my Frisbee. Hmmm…

"Can I play?" popped out of my mouth before I could stop it.

His friends were kinda cute too.

What was I thinking? I guess I wasn't. Stupid, stupid. What about Al? No one could measure up to him and our shared history. On the other hand, I'd known Al for seven years, and he'd never once made a move…maybe I could make him a little jealous-I'd certainly been jealous enough for the both of us when he told Claire he'd kissed someone, maybe he should have a taste of his own medicine (not that he probably even realized he was doing it.) And if that didn't work…possibly I'd find a really great guy who wasn't Al? The odds didn't seem to be in favor of that, my heart muttered sullenly, but my head snapped back that _it_, being the _brain_ and all, was the thinking organ, and my heart could just continue pumping blood and being quiet, thank you very much.

I think I'm coming unglued.

I put my hands up and barely caught the Frisbee as the blond smiled at me. I grinned back and tossed it on to the next boy with disastrous results, not that he seemed to mind. We continued like this for several minutes, and then the boys came out of the cave. I saw them stop for a split second when they spotted me, then watched them edge along the cliff, Al looking every few seconds.

I was on auto-pilot.

Put hands up. Fumble catching Frisbee, bungle toss to next hot bloke.

Crap. Now I felt kinda guilty. Then I remembered wondering who the mystery girl was, and my resolve strengthened. This served multiple purposes, I reminded myself. A, remind them all not to take me for granted. B, get Al jealous. Ugh, that sounded so horrible. This wasn't who I was, what I did. I didn't manipulate and mislead and hurt people. I didn't wear my emotions on my sleeve, I guarded myself and my heart, but I didn't purposefully hurt others, either.

It gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, even as I remembered the smiles from the new boys.

Yeah, I'm certainly, totally, unglued.

Claire dashed up, and whispered in my ear, "When's lunch? I asked Al and he didn't know, he said to come ask you."

I checked the sun. "Should be soon, maybe forty-five minutes."

Claire nodded. "Al said you ran off with a bunch of teenage boys and that I should come bother you." She smirked, and I shuddered. This was the girl who'd growled at boys in Hogsmead and Diagon Ally only last year when she thought they were looking at me. Literally _growled_. "But I'm not going to do that. He's silly." She smiled up at me, eyes glinting.

"Guess he miscalculated whose side you're on, huh?" I whispered, grinning. She tossed her hair as she ran off again.

I looked up to catch the Frisbee, and saw two of the boys totally disengaged, throwing…I squinted…_rocks_…at each other. _Rocks_? Where had they gotten _rocks_? I tossed the Frisbee back, and wrinkled my nose as I considered them. Then one aimed a bit…uh, below the belt, and while the other two doubled over with laughter he moaned and groaned.

Give me a break. These guys were worse than the Marauders on their awfulest, most nasty-boyish day, something I hadn't thought was possible.

I snatched up the Frisbee and ran for the hills, so-to-speak , heading where I'd last seen the boys. I found them behind a large rock, out of sight of the rock-throwing idiots, and nonchalantly walked up.

"Hey."

"Hey," they all muttered.

Shoot. They were all eyeing me a little bit, but Al was schlumped over, fiddling with the ridges on the Quaffle. "Where'd you guys go? I wasn't sure and didn't want to get lost, so I went to get my Frisbee back."

Al perked up, and Drew answered "We were just poking around in the cave. Ty here thought he saw _crystals_."

"Oh, did you find anything?"

"Just some fossils, want to see?" Logan asked.

I nodded, and we all started trooping back the way they'd came.

"Claire said you told her I was with boys and to come pester me," I told Al, watching for his reaction.

He smirked, then almost tried to wipe it off his face before giving up. "Yeah," he admitted, grinning devilishly.

"Hump," I said, but bumped his shoulder. Had he maybe been a bit jealous? Wanted to break it up, get me back?

He was stopped grinning, and I wondered if I'd made him feel as weird as he'd made me feel with the kissing stuff. At least he hadn't done it on purpose. Well, kinda on purpose. _Accidentally_ on purpose.

"You know," I started, not sure why I felt the need to share it, just wanting to see him grin again, "they started throwing _rocks_ at each other."

His eyebrows went up.

"I couldn't believe it. Made you guys look like Merlin or something."

I snuck another glance over at him as we got to the mouth of the cave. He was grinning, not devilishly, just kind of…_pleased_.

_A/N: I know it's kinda short, this and the last chapter are one chapter on HPFF, but since there's no wait time on here, I try to update faster, even if the chappies end up being shorter. _

_Lemme know what you think. More drama ahead, I promise!_


	10. Chapter 10

"_Hey." He glanced up at me, then stood and walked over._

"_Hi," he whispered, then kissed me. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me closer, bring by body flush against his while deepening the kiss. He tasted like spearmint, and I felt myself getting lost in his warmth, the feeling of his mouth working over my own with growing urgency, even though a fuzzy thought was floating around in the back of my brain that someone would come looking for us if we didn't show up soon. _

_I groan at the thought and slipped my hands into his hair, determined to get the most out of this before-_

"Wake up! It's flat hunting day!"

I slipped out of my dream, my emotions quickly going from blissful to resentful at being awoken by-

I screamed. "Al!" My heart was suddenly pounding a million miles an hour, not from lust but the fact that the boy I could have _sworn _I'd been kissing moments before was sitting on my bed, body dipping the bed, straining the covers over my legs and tilting my body towards his once again. I started panting from the shock, and quickly rolled over and buried my head in the pillows once I noticed how much my chest was heaving from the encroaching panic.

"Phee?" he asked hesitantly, setting a hand on my shoulder. It felt like it was scorching through the over-sized tee shirt I slept in. Breathe in, exhale. Repeat. Just a dream. _Just a dream_.

An idea my body was _totally_ buying, since I could still feel his lips on mine, the impression of velvet still a very real sensation in my mind. Ugh, stupid vivid dreams. Stupid, _lovely_ vivid dreams…

"Phee, you alive? Do you need to check your blood sugar?" It was a valid question, I'd been known to be pretty loopy and do some stupid things when my blood sugars were either too high or too low, and I'd woken up out of range, feeling extremely weird, more mornings than I cared to think about.

"I'm fine," I mumbled through the pillows as he (finally) removed his hand. My shoulder was instantly cold, and I wished he'd touch me again. I groaned and rolled over. "I'm fine," I repeated, trying to convince myself as much as him.

"I was just really deeply asleep," I started, and propped myself up on my elbows.

_Busy kissing you_, my mind corrected.

"You just startled me," I continued. A pained expression crossed his face.

_I liked dream-Al better. He was being _very…_nice. Yes, _nice… my head chipped in devilishly.

"So, I'll be down for breakfast in a few minutes, okay?" I finished brightly, wincing as my eyes lingered on his lips for a few seconds longer than they probably should have.

He nodded. The door _snick_ed shut and I flopped back onto the pillows and indulged in one shriek before taking a few more calming breathes and getting up to face the day flat hunting with the (clueless) guy I loved.

_I'm so tired_ I whined mentally as our car pulled up outside the eighth apartment building of the day.

"I'm tired," Al complained as he got out, "and hungry." I felt my gut tighten. We were almost always so in sync-like an old married couple Mum had quipped several times-but it always surprised me to hear my thoughts coming out of his mouth.

"Me too," I commiserated, mind still wandering back over the years, remembering movies during which, every time I glanced over at him, he was sitting the exact same way I was; questions posed to me, answered verbatim what I'd opened my mouth to say, by him.

"Come on, last one." Hermione encouraged as she consulted her notepad. We'd wanted to bring along someone who knew what they were doing, and Rose's mum had been more than happy to take the day off and tromp around London with us.

So far we'd seen everything from a "delightful historic building" which turned out to be a euphemism for _rusted pipes_ and _bathroom-with-the-sink-and-loo-in-the-shower-because-it's-so-tiny_ to "modern flats, a blank canvas for your life!", except blank canvas apparently meant _here's-a-white-box-have-fun-with-no-walls_.

"So what's this one?" Maddy asked, craning up at the stone building.

"Contemporary take on classic English charm," Rose rattled off as she craned over her Mum's shoulder.

I eyed it as we wandered sluggishly in, bumping off each other like sleepy kids playing amoeba tag, and wondered what horrors it could hold.

"Welcome to Ivy Tower." A older gentleman, because there was no other way to describe him, greeted us, rising from his chair behind the front desk next to a security man. He had white hair, gray three-piece suit, sapphire tie and somehow, a comforting, grandfatherly vibe. After Rose rattled off what floor plans we'd come to look at, he led us over to a set of elevators and took us up to the fourth floor.

"We're a small building, with just five floors," he explained on the way up, "but it fosters a community environment. A few young business people, newly married couples, although the penthouse on the fifth floor was just rented to a lovely family with a baby girl and toddler son." We all smiled and nodded, the boys probably wondering why we needed to know this, while I wondered how sound-proof the building was and how inclined to colic the baby was. We walked down a parquet floor hallway as he told us, "There are a total of four three-bedroom units, on the third and fourth floors. There are several two bedroom units still available also, on the second floor." He inserted a key into the lock and pushed the door open, gesturing us in ahead of him. I walked in next to Rose, and from behind, Al and Scorpius slammed into as us we stopped in our tracks.

I pointed and gaped soundlessly at the light flooding into the living room from the windows and the gleaming hardwood floors. We were standing in a chair rail paneled hall, the doorway to the living room directly across from us, through which we could see the light and sheer cleanliness and space of it.

"Now _this_ looks promising," Rose muttered quietly.

Twenty minutes later we were still wondering if the building was real. The living room was open to a dining area, which flowed into a kitchen. Down the hallway in one direction was two bedrooms, in the other direction, another bedroom and the bathroom. The guys were madly whispering, trying to figure out a way to divide themselves up among a three bedroom and a two bedroom, while Maddy, Rose and I were trying to get Hermione to come up with _some_ reason to not jump all over this right away. Shockingly, she couldn't think of any strong objections.

And that's how, one hour after we got out of the car ready to pass out, we all got keys and a cheerful "See you next week!" from our new landlord.

The apartments were unfurnished, so we were in London the next few days looking for bargains on everything from sofas to plates. We'd managed to track down most of the big stuff, with Mum back and helping two days after we'd signed. Claire moved home, but I stayed put in the Potter house, unable to find a reason to move home for six days only to turn around and pack up again.

The boys had worked out that Scorpius and Drew would share the two bedroom, while Logan, Tyler and Albus were taking the three bedroom. "I'm so glad," Rose confided, "Ty would have driven him crazy." Maddy and I dissolved in giggles, and I managed to gasp out "Tyler drives _everyone_ crazy!"

Today we were in search of household wizarding items, and whatever other homey touches we could find in Diagon Ally. It was Saturday, so the whole Potter clan decided to come, along with Mum and Claire. I think the other boys maybe didn't mention all the shopping to their parents, because I'm pretty sure most of them would have been along too if they'd known.

Albus and I had just finished tackling self-scrubbing pots when I saw a tall black guy walk past with a slim red haired girl, arm around her waist. _Don't they make a cute couple_, I thought, glancing over at Al wistfully. And seeing Al reminded me of the red haired girl again. Suddenly I was seeing those same waves flying as she ran after her brother. _Crap, was that Lily and Logan?_ I wondered. I peered ahead, but they were lost in the crowd.

"What's next?" Albus asked while we wandered up the street.

"That's about it," I watched him hauling the six heaviest bags, and hitched my purse strap empathetically. I had several lighter bags, but Al had insisted on taking all the pots and pans we'd gotten, for all three flats. "I think between all of us, everything we _need_ is taken care of." I checked my watch. "Want to get a snack?" It was about halfway through the afternoon, and we'd both be happier with some food in us.

"Sure." He looked relieved. We quickly found a shop selling frozen yogurt, and, of all things, hotdogs. We were about done eating when I reached for my phone to check for messages and found it missing. Five minutes later, my purse and all the bags of purchases had been torn apart and still no cell phone. Then I remembered Maddy texting me a picture of a blown glass owl vase for the built-in bookcases in the living room, just as we were checking out, and flashed on setting it on the counter while we struggled with the bags.

"I think I left it at the cookware store. I'm going to go check, you stay here with the bags and I'll be right back." Al nodded around a mouthful of hotdog.

I quickly found my phone, tucked behind the counter by the witch manning the register, who'd noticed it around the time I'd realized I'd lost it when Mum tried to call me. I thanked the witch as I dialed Mum, and was just finishing the call when my eye snagged on a flash of red hair in the ally way I was passing. I ended the call and slowly backed up.

Slim white hands framed a dark face, and a rich laugh mingled with a lighter, bubblier giggle. Logan was running his fingers through Lily's hair, kissing her gently. I felt my heart melting, then remembered Al, and how suckishly I kept secrets from him. And out right lying? You could forget that. He'd learned all my tells (I still wasn't sure what they were) by fourth year. "Ahem," I reluctantly cleared my throat and stepped closer. They didn't notice, too wrapped up in each other to hear me trying to get their attention. I tried again, "Lily." Still nothing. "Oi, Logan!" I whispered harshly, trying not to draw attention from other passersby to the couple.

And it worked. Logan jerked back, and Lily took one look at me before burying her face in his chest. He wrapped an arm around her back and smiled sheepishly at me. I put my hands on my hips. "What are you two doing, sneaking around? You should have been more careful, at least. I'd already guessed." I raised an eyebrow and waited.

"I've liked him for ages," Lily's muffled voice came from behind her hair, face still snuggled against her…boyfriend? "since Christmas, and then the guys have been at the house so much this summer, and we just kind of…" she trailed off and raise her head, and glanced up at him.

"We wanted to wait a bit, not get the whole family, _Albus_, all over us right off the bat," Logan explained. "Al's always threatened all of us with bodily harm if we ever so much as glanced sideways at anyone he's related to, or you. Not that anyone was actually glancing sideways at you," Logan hurried to clear up, and then groaned. "Not that you aren't…it's just…"

"I'm one of the guys," I filled in dryly, letting me resignation color my words.

"And he's threatened to…er, never mind," Lily glanced at Logan again. "Anyway, he was never thrilled about my crushes. So I just thought…"

"You guys are probably right. But you're going to have to tell him now, you know how bad I am at keeping big secrets from Al." They both groaned and rolled their eyes. "I know, I know. But if he thinks there's something going on and asks me, he'll _know_ if I'm lying.

"I just can't lie to Albus." I finished.

"Lie to me about what?" a voice asked from behind me.


	11. Chapter 11

Crap, crap, smiled angelically, as though that would save her, save them…hell, save us. Although, he did hear me say I couldn't keep a secret from him, didn't he? Of course, I'd managed to keep the Big One, the you're-home-to-me, I-want-to-marry-you-and-have-your-children one. So maybe I'm not such a sucky secret keeper.

I slowly turned around, over compensating for to urge to whip around guiltily. "Hey Al! Found my phone!" I cringed, my voice overly cheerful even to my own ears.

"That's good Soph," he said distractedly. Crap, he called me Sohp. I was Sophie, I was Phee, but I was only Soph when his head was messed up. "What's going on? Why is your inability to lie to me an issue?" he asked, staring me down like I was holding a knife and ranting crazily.

"Erm…" I fished around for an excuse, "Uh…" nothing was coming to me. Probably because I was only devoting half my brain power to it, the other half being busily occupied by the fact that I didn't really want to lie to him. But it wasn't my job to tell him about his sister and Logan, either. "Ah, see, the thing is…"

"I was waiting to tell you something," Lily broke in, "and Sophie found out and I still wanted to tell you myself, but she said she couldn't keep a secret from you, and that you know all her lying tells, and-"

"You and Logan?" Al asked, dangerously quiet. It was yet another thing I loved about him, he hardly ever yelled when he was mad, unlike my father, who'd only seemed to have two modes, in-your-face-and-yelling mad and pathetically-weak-begging-for-forgiveness. I'd seen more than enough of both for ten lifetimes.

"We wanted to tell you, tell the whole family, but I just didn't want all the threatening and teasing and everything right off the bat." Lily stared out at a normal level, but was whispering by the end, lower lip trembling as she twisted a hand in Logan's shirt.

Al sighed and sagged, the fabric of his tee shirt catching mine and dragging my sleeve down. I glanced over, I hadn't even realized he'd moved so our shoulders were touching.

He was eyeing the two of them, glaring at Logan and staring at Lily helplessly. "Well," he finally said, "I don't suppose there's much I can do about it, is there?" He sighed, and ran a hand through his hair, before dropping it to his side and clenching it into a fist. "But if you hurt her, I swear I will hex you into oblivion. And then bring you back and sic James on you."

Logan shuddered. "Good thing I don't have to worry about that," he said after a few beats, "I would never do anything to hurt her. Just like you'd never hur-"

"So," Al interrupted crisply, "we're cool. Should we go find everybody else?"

"Sure." Logan drew the word out, and gave Al and knowing look. I snagged Lily as she walked past, allowing the guys to draw ahead.

"Did it seem to you like Logan was going to say something about who Al liked?" I asked her, twenty-five percent curious and seventy-five percent terrified. Of having to share him, of the faceless girl who might, could, would take my best friend away from me suddenly becoming more tangible with a name.

Lily's forehead wrinkled for a moment, eyes clouding over, then she almost seemed to shake herself out. "No, I don't think so." She said confidently. "Let's catch up."

I wasn't just imaging things, I knew Logan had been about to say something interesting. Maybe the girl Al had kissed? I kept forgetting about that, and then remembering. It was like learning it for the first time again and again. I sighed, thinking about Albus touching another girl. It killed me, but I wasn't willing to put myself out of my misery. I couldn't just throw our friendship away because he didn't want as much out of it as I did. I needed him.

We were almost caught up with the guys when Lily glanced over at me, amusement playing over her face, and then her brother, shaking her head.

Weird.

_A/N: really short, I know, but I wanted to get it up fairly fast after the cliffie. I have the next few chapters roughly planned out, so I should be able to get them done pretty quickly. Reviews make me write faster…just sayin' :)_


	12. Chapter 12

"Pirates!"

"No! Chick flick! It's a heart-warming tale of-"

"Yuck."

"It's so our turn!"

I cut across the argument currently raging between the boys and my girlfriends. "How about the spy one? With the wife who doesn't know her husband is actually a spy?" I suggested. It was a win-win with things blowing up, getting shot at and spontaneously combusting for the boys, romantic woes with a happy ending for the girls.

Everybody froze, looking at me for a moment in a daze, and then heads started nodding. Maddy flopped onto Drew's lap, and he shot me a _thank you_ look. Like me, he could appreciate a decent movie, even if it wasn't _great_ or our gender's chosen genre, so he'd just been patiently waiting it out, same as I'd been. Until I'd lost my patience.

The guys all flopped down and looked at me expectantly. I sighed and found the DVD, shoved it in. Sometimes I wondered what they'd do without me. I visually dissected suspect foods, translated girl-speak and generally ended up looking out for them. Although, on the flipside, they took care of me too.

I sank onto the sofa next to Al and Tyler and squirmed a bit closer to Al, hoping I was being sneaky about it. We'd moved in two weeks before and had all just finished our first week of work or training. It was Friday night and no one was fired or kicked out yet, although for some reason Logan was running late, strange since he and Al were in the same program and _should_ have been able to make it home at the same time.

Just as the menu screen popped up Logan burst through the door. We were in our apartment, since the boys' were already dirtier than ours. We'd added charms to all our locks, so if we left the doors unlocked and were expecting each other we could just come in without anyone having to get the door. It had been Tyler's idea(surprise, surprise, he didn't want to get up from playing video games), but Rose was the one to take his whining and give it a practical application.

"Sorry I'm late," Logan groaned, snagging a slice of pizza from the coffee table as I hit play. He poured a drink and then sat down on couch, forcing Al closer. I fought the urge to snuggle into his side and distracted myself with a bite of pizza.

Fifteen minutes later all the food was gone, the soda bottles empty, and the husband in the movie was the target of an assassin. I felt pressure on my ribs, and glanced down to find Al's knee wedged against my ribcage. I glanced over at him-was it worth it to let him get away with it? It had been a long week, and I felt safe and cozy, but it would inevitably induce more wistful thoughts of more than friendship with him. I sighed as I caved and dropped my arm on top of his leg.

I made it about halfway through the movie before my eyes got so heavy I gave up trying to peel them open every time they shut. I drifted around in half-conscious dreams, the sounds from the movie and my friends coloring the direction the dreams took. Then the sound stopped and I fell even more soundly asleep. Until I heard Tyler.  
>"How do you hook it up?" I heard him ask. I struggled into a semi-awake state and cracked one eye open to find him eyeing a video game console that we girls hadn't cared enough to set up with the TV yet. "Al?"<p>

The other guys were scratching their heads. Al was the one who was good with the electronics. "I'm not getting up," Al whispered from somewhere close by, just as I was drifting off again.

"Dude, come on," Tyler said, which was quickly followed by a _swack_ing sound. "Ouch, Mads. I'm wounded. Killer ballerina, huh?"

"I'm not waking Phee up." Al whispered harshly across the room.

_Hmm?_ I thought. What did Al's activities have to do with waking me up? I snuggled farther in and clutched a blanket I didn't remember getting higher. A warm hand tightened around my shoulder, and I gradually became aware that the surface my face was laying on was warm and felt an awful lot like tee-shirt-covered _skin_. I sniffed tentatively. _Old spice._ Albus's skin, to be exact. I sighed in contentment, too tired and comfortable to worry about anything at all.

"Just take her to bed," Rose's voice suggested.

A Ty-snicker reached my ears, followed by a Ty-yelp. "What was that for?" he whined.

"What do you think?" Rose and Maddy chorused.

"As I was _trying_ to say," Rose was using her glaring voice, "before I was so rudely interrupted, she's been really tired this week, the stress from work is messing with her blood sugar and keeping her up late."

I felt Al nod, then start to move. I probably could have gotten up and gone to bed myself, but hey, who was I to tell Al not to carry me? He lifted my arm and stuck it over his shoulder, then hooked his arm under my knees. I was aparantly lighter than I thought I was, because he lifted me like I weighed nothing, and my arm tightened reflexively on his neck. I told myself that my thumb just _happened_ to end up in his hair, because I needed to hold on.

I didn't have an excuse for the way it was sneaking steadily further into the soft black locks, however.

My head slid up from his chest to the crook of his neck as he lifted my higher in his arms. I nuzzled in, inhibitions vanished in my sleep-addled state. The light flashed brighter for a second-_that was weird_-and then a steady beat came as he carried me down the hall to my bedroom.

All too soon he was easing me out of his arms and gently cradling my head as he lowered it to the pillow. My body tilted towards him, the weight of the knee he rested by where my hip now lay pulling the mattress down. "Night Phee," he whispered just before something brushed my forehead. I heard myself make some sort of soft sound, and after a few moments the door _snick_ed shut.

Moments later, I was asleep again, dreaming about the safety of my best friend's arms.

_A/N: What do you think? Drop me a review! The next chapter should be a bit more…eventful ^_^_


	13. Chapter 13

"What about that time I tried to teach you to dance?" Al widened his eyes at me, but James had already heard.

"You, Albus?" he said, snickering. "Dancing? I bet you looked like a chicken with its head cut off."

Al huffed as I explained, "Not really, it was a waltz we were attempting. In fourth year, I think. Lily and Claire wanted a boy to 'fancy' dance with."

"And he sucked," Lily groused from across the table, "didn't even try for more than a minute or two once Sophie taught him. Total waste of time." Letter finished, she got up and wandered out, looking for the family owl. Al and I were at the Potters for a Saturday brunch, although at three in the afternoon, brunch was long over, and just about everybody else-like Rose and Scorpius-had left.

Al was still glowering at James, who had an eyebrow raised as if to say _so what?_ I laughed at the stare down, and poked James in the side to make him stop. When he didn't, I stabbed again. Suddenly he swung around towards me and narrowed his eyes. I grinned and batted my eyelashes once, not liking the predatory gleam he'd gotten in his eyes. Lightning fast his hands whipped out and grabbed my wrists. "Not so cocky now, huh?" he taunted. I squirmed a bit, knowing that he wanted me to try and get loose but not bothering to do much since I knew he'd let me go when he was good a ready and not a moment before. Lucky me, the older brother I never had.

"Al, I've got her!" he crowed, peering around me at his younger brother. Then he jerked his chin back towards my abdomen, "Do it!"

I groaned, knowing that chances were pretty good I was about to get tickled. A moment, a hesitation, and then Al's hands landed on my side. I wiggled, trying to get free, but it didn't work. My gasp-laugh rang out through the kitchen as Ginny walked in.

"Hey Mum!" Al called cheerfully, and James chimed in with, "We're just torturing Soph a bit!"

"Mmm," she hummed, pulling a glass down. I finally twisted away and fixed Al with a reproachful look.

"How could you gang-" I started, glaring up at his happy green eyes, when I cut myself off with a shriek as he snuck a hand onto my ribcage again. I settled for finishing my thought with a simple but effective "Gah!"

He smirked back obnoxiously, and I tried not to stare at his lips. Or his eyes, because the longer I looked at his eyes the more I wanted to kiss him and the more sure I became that my want was clear in my own eyes.

It was just so easy to let my guard down with him.

"Well, that was fun," James said, then promptly walked out of the kitchen. I shrugged-_boys were weird_-and watched Ginny pour a glass of ice tea and pick up a magazine and notepad. I was just sitting down again when I heard _bleep-bleep bleep-bleep . _

"Al!" I whined, glanced over to find him tapping the screen of Harry's cell phone distractedly. He looked at me, shrugged, and continued tapping._ Bleep bleep bleep-bleep._ I reached over and caught his fingers in mine, moved them away and then let go, because I had to. They felt right wrapped around mine, warm and solid and like home. A moment after I let go…_bleep-bleep_-_bleep-bleep._ He was smirking at me, smugness written in every line of his face.

I reached around him and snatched the phone off the table. "You stole my dad's phone!" he said, sounding aghast. I shrugged. He turned to his mom, who was just settling herself at the other end of the table. "She stole dad's phone." I looked at Ginny, not entirely sure how she'd react, and hoping my sheepish expression would keep me from getting into _too_ much trouble. Her lips twitched in an almost-smile and she shrugged at Albus, a _so what_? gesture.

I turned to my best friend, smirking, and found him still looking at his mother in shock. When he finally turned back to me, he only took a moment to find his bearings and act, which I was totally unprepared for. The phone was behind my back, and he lunged for it, startling me into a squeak of alarm. I jumped up and ran from the kitchen, and heard him pounding behind me. The skirt of my tiered dress swished against my legs while my long hair flew wildly around as I dashed through the hall, past the stairs and into the living room.

I glanced over my shoulder to check for him, and find him dangerously close, grinning as he gave chase. My face already hurt from my smile-such a nice pain, cheeks hurting from so much happiness-and a laugh bubbles its way out of my mouth, starting somewhere around my heart, I think.

Al catches me at the doorframe to the living room, although I know he's_ let_ me get this far, could have caught me moments after I left the table, and I slip past the frame, flatten myself against the wall with the phone behind my back. He smirks down at me and puts a hand on my side, peeling me away from the wall even as I lean my shoulders back into it, arching my body to keep the hand holding the phone sandwiched better the wall and my upper back.

Our legs tangle, and he reaches his free hand behind my back, wrestles the phone away from me. I deflate, look morosely towards the floor but only see my one of my bare legs stuck between his, foot curved around his ankle. The fabric of his jean leg is rough against my freshly shaved shin and I look back up, startled by the intimacy of out entwined legs. We've shared so, so much, but physically I've been reserved, because every time I touch him-and a lot of times when I'm not-I'm sure my heart is in my eyes. This is foreign, yet still with the boy I know almost as well as myself.

I can feel my cheeks still flushed from running and smiling, the echo of the grin still aching in my cheeks, a sated kind of pain, when my eyes meet his green ones. His hand is still at my hip, the other arm braced at the elbow against the wall next to my head, the phone that started all this now missing. His eyes are on my face, intensely watching me. I think about all the times he's looked at me like this, across a dinner table, a million other times I've glanced up and found him intently staring.

I stare back, just like I always do, never able to give up the chance to openly watch him-because he started it, after all, so it was okay-and feel the blood rushing to my cheeks as his scrutiny continues. He is so familiar, so safe, but unknown, too, because I do not know what his lips feel like, or how he holds hands, if he laces fingers or if he wraps his whole hand around yours.

His green eyes are warm, almost unbearably so, as we reach thirty, forty seconds and he shows no sign of looking away, of stopping. I give up trying to tamp my heart down, cease any effort I was still making to keep love from shinning in my eyes. I can't hide this one thing I've hidden from him for all these years while looking him in the eye like this, less than eight inches between us.

And I'm tired of looking away.

I refuse to look away.

The fabric of his jeans rubs against my legs, bringing to my attention that he is, if it's even possible, getting closer, never breaking eye contact. Something takes possession of my hands, which have been dangling at my sides, and suddenly they're bunching the gray tee shirt at his waist.

The warmth in his eyes flares as something sparks, catches fire in his gaze. He is close, so close, his warmth no longer enveloping me but now merging with my own body heat, so that I can't tell where he stops and I start; my foot is still hooked around his ankle, and then his forehead is resting against mine, our breaths mingling, eyes still locked.

He is hesitant and shy and serious and I just love him _so much_. It's powerful and overwhelming and rushing through my body with my blood. His arm slides down the wall and he brings his hand up to clasp my neck, gently, like I'm breakable or precious or might spook and dash off. His thumb rubs tiny circles under my ear.

I want to savor this fragile moment, because it will never come back. I can feel my love for him flaring in my stomach, warming my heart and clearing my mind, the butterflies that have given me such grief now gone, replaced by calm certainty.

I close my eyes, move my face minutely and brush his nose with mine, body canting farther towards his, open them when his hand on my hip tightens.

"Really?" he asks, his eyes now shut, voice raised and hopeful at the ending syllable. I don't ask what he means.

"Yes." His eyes open and ask if I'm sure. One of my hands slips away from his waist and up to his hair. I can feel my I-love-you-so-much-it-hurts smile curling on my face, the one I only indulge in once in a while, when no one's around, when I just can't hold it in anymore.

And suddenly, his lips are on mine and my best friend is kissing me.

_A/N: Sorry this took so long, life has been completely crazy, in every possible way. Anyway, I've had this written for a while, but I wanted it to be perfect, so I kept coming back and edting/tweaking it until I was totally satisfied! I'm really happy with it, but please please let me know what you think!_


End file.
